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Decreased expression of Flightless I, a gelsolin family member and developmental regulator, in early-gestation fetal wounds improves healing

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Abstract

Up until late in the third trimester of gestation and through to adulthood, the healing response acts more to regenerate than to repair a wound. The mechanisms underlying this “scar-free” healing remain unknown although the actin cytoskeleton has a major role. Flightless I (Flii), an actin-remodelling protein and essential developmental regulator, negatively affects wound repair but its effect on scar-free fetal healing is unknown. Using fetal skin explants from E17 (regenerate) and E19 (repair) rats, the function of Flii in fetal wound repair was determined. Expression of Flii increased between E17 and E19 days of gestation and wounding transiently increased Flii expression in E17 but not E19 wounds. However, both confocal and immunofluorescent analysis showed E17 keratinocytes immediately adjacent to the wounds downregulated Flii. As a nuclear coactivator and inhibitor of proliferation and migration, the absence of Flii in cells at the edge of the wound could be instrumental in allowing these cells to proliferate and migrate into the wound deficit. In contrast, Flii was strongly expressed within the cytoplasm and nucleus of keratinocytes within epidermal cells at the leading edge of E19 wounded fetal skin explants. This increase in Flii expression in E19 wounds could affect the way these cells migrate into the wound space and contribute to impaired wound healing. Neutralising Flii protein improved healing of early- but not late-gestation wounds. Flii did not colocalise with actin cables formed around E17 wounds suggesting an independent mechanism of action distinct from its actin-binding function in scar-free wound repair.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by grants from the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia and the Women’s and Children’s Hospital Research Foundation. AJC is supported by an NHMRC Senior Research Fellowship. RA is supported by The Sylvia and Charles Viertel Charitable Foundation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Women’s and Children’s Health Research Institute, 72 King William Road, North Adelaide, SA, 5006, Australia

    Cheng-Hung Lin, James M. Waters, Barry C. Powell & Allison J. Cowin

  2. Research School of Biological Sciences, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia

    Ruth M. Arkell

  3. Discipline of Paediatrics, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5005, Australia

    Allison J. Cowin

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  1. Cheng-Hung Lin
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  2. James M. Waters
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  3. Barry C. Powell
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  4. Ruth M. Arkell
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  5. Allison J. Cowin
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Correspondence to Allison J. Cowin.

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Lin, CH., Waters, J.M., Powell, B.C. et al. Decreased expression of Flightless I, a gelsolin family member and developmental regulator, in early-gestation fetal wounds improves healing. Mamm Genome 22, 341–352 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00335-011-9320-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00335-011-9320-z

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